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One Dream: Voyage 12
Past Voyage Voyage 12: Helter-Skelter ???:' Hah!! Hngh!! Hrah!! Chaotic shouts rung through the area; proceeded shortly after by loud thumps and vibrating tree branches. Down below, someone seemed to be pounding their fists and legs into the trunk of a mangrove tree non-stop. Despite their best attempts however, the sheer size of Sabaody's trees made them difficult to effectively damage, if not topple over. One would have to use something equivalent to that of a laser beam or so if they wished to eradicate these impressive trees. Undeterred, the assailant kept up his assault. Another fist slammed into the trunk... ''Masculine Assailant: Hrngh!!'' And then a swing from his right leg. ''Masculine Assailant: Hyah!!'' Next to him seemed to be three others; roughly somewhere in their adolescence. They watched the assaulter as he kept up the pressure against his defenseless non-sentient opponent. ''Blonde Teenager: How long has he been at it now?'' ''White Haired Teenager: About an hour almost, I'd say.'' ''Blonde Teenager: Guess that means he's almost through. He likes to take his sweet time buffing himself up like this; so my best bet is he's going to be done soon. Unless he's aiming to work himself to death today.'' ''Brunette Teenager (smirking playfully): Why don't we ask him?'' The young lady, with her right hand on her hip, called out to the teen before her. ''Brunette Teenager: Hey!! You dead yet?!'' Her two companions grimaced at her; not all too pleased with the not so subtle teasing. The evidently shirtless young man who was pummeling the tree paused for a bit; turning to look at the young lady with a deadpan look on his face. Sweat could be seen framing his face, and he was breathing deeply, if only a little. ''Shirtless Teenager (unamused): Is that a trick question? Look, can't you see I'm busy here?'' ''Brunette Teenager: Too busy working out to answer a question? Boy, when'd you become the anti-social type?'' The shirtless young man grunted in protest before returning to the tree trunk. ''White Haired Teenager: You know Maya, sometimes you really can go too far.'' ''Maya: Aw shuddup, Boris.'' Maya shrugged casually; raising her hands palm-side up, as if none of this were too big a deal to her. ''Maya: Like you would know anything about comedy.'' ''Boris: I know a lot more than you do.'' The blonde teenager, who was supposedly a younger Meso, sighed. It was yet another tiresome feud between Maya and Boris, like usual. This time, he decided to stay out of their way and hope the argument would settle itself. In the meanwhile, an even greater thud resonated from the tree trunk. Meso looked up to see a reptilian monster standing before him, with its fist connected to the trunk. ''Spike: Colossal Crash!!'' Beginning to end. Please open in a new tab or window. '''''SPIKE AGE: 15 The trunk of the tree appeared cracked, but otherwise alright. Spike drew back his right arm and shrunk back to his human state. He walked towards a nearby rock where a clean white towel was waiting for him. Grabbing it and placing it on him, Spike rubbed the sweat off of his face and out of his hair for extra measure. He then rested the towel around his neck before fixing his attention on his friends. Spike (satisfied):' Guess that'll do for today. Spike, aside from looking older after these past seven years, now also looked a bit more mature, and much stronger than he used to be. Whereas as a child, he looked scrawny and average, he had now developed some finely noticeable bulk to his musculature. He walked over to Meso, Maya and Boris as the two continued to senselessly argue in the background. ''Spike: What're they fighting about now?'' ''Meso: Not like it matters. They could fight about almost anything. Like who breathes the most air or who can argue the longest.'' ''Spike: Yeah, suppose that's true. Makes you wonder why they even hang out together.'' ''Meso: That's probably the greatest mystery of our time.'' Meso immediately shifted mental gears when he realized the conversation was getting dull. Spike was finished with his work out and now all anyone was doing was just standing there. ''Meso: Hey, lovebirds. You two done bickering like kids yet? I'm getting bored from watching you.'' Both Maya and Boris quickly snapped out of their heated debate to glare angrily at Meso. ''Maya and Boris: WHAT'D YOU CALL US?!!'' Both Spike and Meso stared at them; with Meso forming a large sweatdrop on the back of his head. ''Meso: Well that managed to get your attention. Look, don't take it so literally. You'd probably make a horrible couple anyway.'' ''Maya and Boris: YOU'RE DAMN STRAIGHT!!'' ''Spike: Wait, when'd they fall in love? I swear no one tells me anything anymore.'' ''Maya and Boris (greatly annoyed): WE ARE NOT IN LOVE!!'' ''Meso (dumbfounded): It was a figure of speech...'' Now more confused than ever, all Spike could manage to do was raise an eyebrow and scratch the side of his head as he tried to figure this all out. Figurative language was never really a strong suit when it came to Spike. ''Spike (confused): Hm...?'' ---- With the ensuing madness finally winding down, the group of four were now enjoying a casual stroll through the mangroves; discussing whatever came to mind at the time. Judging by the placement of the sun, they figured now was just about the time when Spike would have to be sent home, as per Urufu's curfew. ''Meso: Guess this is where we part ways.'' ''Spike: Wait, what? How come?'' ''Maya (smirking): Cuz your daddy wants you home before beddy-by time.'' ''Spike (embarrassed): Oh shut up! It's not like that!'' To make himself seem tougher and more mature, Spike stuck out his chest, closed his eyes, held his head up and walked blindly forward, step by step; trying to look as if he were too cool to care about anyone's opinions. ''Spike: My pops is just a big worry-wart is all. He thinks I can't handle myself or something.'' ''Meso: Well fathers are like that, I suppose.'' Spike let out a dissatisfied snort. ''Spike: Hmph! He won't be that way for long though. I'm getting stronger every day. Before he knows it, I'll be even stronger than him. And then after that...'' Spike's facade loosened up. His eyes reopened, showing a glimmer of self-confidence, and his lips turned into an excited grin. He clenched his right fist tightly as he finished his statement. ''Spike: Heh! I'll become the Pirate King; the greatest pirate in the world. Just you wait and see.'' ''Meso: Ah yes, that crazy dream of yours. That'll prove to your old man that he doesn't have to worry about you. Nothing says "caring parent" like a guy who'll let his son die on some remote island somewhere.'' ''Spike: Like I care what you or anyone else thinks. We've been over this before, Meso. I'm becoming the Pirate King and nothing's gonna stop me.'' ''Meso: No need to get so defensive there, pal. You need to learn how to handle a friendly joke.'' ''Spike: "Joke" nothing. You badmouth my pops like that again, and you'll be missing your mouth when I'm through with you. Got it?'' ''Meso: OK, OK, geez. I'm sorry for my rude comment, o great king of the sea.'' ''Spike: That's more like it.'' '''''Meso, Maya and Boris (thinking with dumbfounded expressions): Sarcasm's wasted on this guy. Just after he thought that, a thought came to Meso. His attitude swiftly changed from comedic disbelief to mild amusement as a sly smile crossed his lips. Meso:' Though I suppose it takes madmen like you to actually accomplish anything in this world; especially when the sane are too afraid to even try. ''Spike: And that means...?'' ''Maya: It means gutsy guys like you actually make a difference; so good luck following that dream of yours.'' ''Boris (smiling playfully): Even if it's pretty nuts and scary.'' ''Spike (amused): Heh... That's what makes it an adventure though.'' And so they continued their trek through the mangrove forest; sharing personal thoughts, teasing one another, and so on, as close friends usually do. Eventually, once within reach of a nearby town, Spike had to split apart from his group and travel on his lonesome; back to his home and father, Urufu. ---- It was a rather uneventful walk through the Sabaody town. People, bubbles, Spike was already very much accustomed to it all by this point. Family and friends were talking and laughing with each other, and other citizens were visiting shops or having lunch at a restaurant. People rode their bubble-themed vehicles, with one Bon Chari passing by Spike without even acknowledging him. It seemed like this was going to be a boring trip back home today. And to Spike, a calm day was a day not worth spent. And so he continued his walk uninterrupted for several minutes, with hardly a thing to do. ...That is, until some sort of commotion caught his attention. Somewhere in an isolated section of the town, where citizens were scarce or just simply gone, Spike could make out the sounds of some sort of struggle going on. As if his prayers were answered, Spike rushed as fast as he could to see what was up. By the time he got there, he could make out a collection of people down the street. It appeared to be split into two distinct groups, depending on what they were wearing. One side was ragtag in appearance; wearing just about any and all sorts of clothing they wished. The other group looked more homogeneous; all of them wearing blue and white clothing in various fashions and styles. Right away, Spike could tell who these people were from experience. He slowed down from a full on run to a jog, and then stopped altogether to watch the scene unfold from a safe distance. ''Large, Plump Marine: So what was that about you kicking our asses? Hehehehe.'' The ragtag group, now all sitting on the ground and looking beat up, could only glare and bare their gritting teeth at the Marines before them. The loss of some implied fight must have been hard for them to swallow. ''Average Marine with Cap: Ya know, for pushovers, you guys are kinda feisty; what with the whole giving us nasty looks and all.'' ''Bald, Thick-Bearded Man in Yellow Vest: Can it; you guys just ambushed us when our captain wasn't here is all. If we had more of our guys here-'' A sudden shot from a rifle was enough to shut the man up. He had looked down to his side to see the bullet had come dangerously close to injuring his hand on the ground. ''Large, Plump Marine: Now now, no excuses. If you're going to blame anyone, blame yourselves for your inadequacy. And while you're at it, you can blame yourselves for getting the stupid notion of becoming pirates in your head.'' The Marines all began to share assorted levels of snickering, chuckling and laughing. If a rousing fight against pirates wasn't going to be enough to amuse them, then they may as well toy with the defeated criminals until backup arrived with handcuffs and transport. This only managed to further infuriate the crew however, as well as entice them to try their luck once more. One such pirate, who had gone bare-chested, wore white baggy pants and a green bandana wrapped around his head, reached for a pistol he had tucked into his red sash. The large, stocky Marine however, caught the man's motion out of the corner of his eye, and brought his cutlass down to the man's neck with a cocky grin on his face. ''Large, Plump Marine: Ohh, so you still got some fight left in you, huh? If we hurt your precious little feelings, then be a man and do something about it. Or does that wasted life of yours mean too much to you?'' The pirate froze for a second or two as he started to rethink his decision. He had seen his opponent's swordplay already, and it wasn't something to take lightly. Clenching his hand against the handle of the pistol, with rage and shame swelling up inside him, he hesitantly drew his hand back, away from the gun. This just encouraged the Marines to become more brazen with their teasing and mockery. The averagely built Marine, wearing his white and blue cap, snorted in the back of his throat as he tried to resist giggling; even going as far as to place his hand over his mouth to hide his smile. But it was no use; he was already starting his giggle fit. ''Large, Plump Marine (sheathing his cutlass and rearing back; still grinning): Heh, predictable. Pirates are so selfish.'' ''Average Marine with Cap (slightly giggling): Man, didn't take him long to change his mind, huh?'' The bare-chested pirate could feel his shame growing more and more with each insult the Marines thought up. His bald headed companion, still glaring angrily at his foes, could only place his right hand on his crewmate's shoulder, in a desperate act of comfort and consolidation. And it was this small act of kindness that managed to soothe the wounded pirate's pride; even if just a little. While they cursed their situation and awaited arrestment, and while the Marines continued to rub salt in the pirates' wounds, little did anyone know they were still under surveillance by one blonde haired teenaged boy. Spike, during the entire time this had been happening, was hiding himself the corner of a white building, with only a few barrels and boxes to act as cover. He kept a tightly focused eye on the Marines, who were continuing to prod and torment the helpless crew of pirates. As he watched this, Spike could feel a surge of multiple emotions race through him; mostly those of empathy, anger and hatred. His body twitched as he tried to contain his rage within his arms, fists and legs. Every muscle in his body was bursting with energy; just waiting to explode into a flurry of punches and kicks. Despite his best attempts to control himself, as he knew full well he was gaining a bad reputation for flying off the handle these days, one thing kept nagging him, even though he wished it wouldn't. Every time he heard the Marines mock the pirates, he could only remember the fun he had on his adventures in his childhood, back before Pierce had abandoned him. Pirates are pushovers? Spike managed to survive his journeys in the Grand Line when he was only five years old! Pirates are inadequate? Neither he nor Urufu would have gotten this far if they weren't successful at what they did! And pirates are selfish? This thought must have hit harder than any other, as memories of Urufu's kindness and selflessness came flooding back to Spike. A fishman who openly admitted he despised humanity in his youth had gone out of his way to save a drowning boy from death, even if it seemed he didn't want to. That same man befriended the boy and adopted him as his very own son. They shared ten wonderful years together and sincerely loved each other as father and son. Spike could care less if people thought he was selfish. Maybe he was, and maybe he wasn't. But Urufu? Selfish? And what about all the other amazing guys who went out to sea to fulfill their dreams and live the romantic life of piracy? These Marines were trampling on every last one of them each time they opened their mouths!!! The very thought of Urufu being disrespected, let alone others like the inspirational Pirate King himself, Gold Roger, was enough to make Spike forget about everything else other than the moment at hand. Pumped up on adrenaline from his increasing anger, his eyes widened to the point where his irises could hardly be seen, and with his body brimming with energy, Spike made his move. It was swift and deliberate; he had now moved out from the corner and accidentally knocked down the barrels onto the street nearby. The commotion caught the group's attention, and now all eyes were on a very clearly pissed off Spike. ''Blonde Marine with Hair in His Eyes (holding up a cutlass towards Spike): Hey!! Who goes there?!!'' Spike just silently stood there, fixating his intense glare on the Marines present. The amount of hatred and rage he must have been feeling seemed to permeate the air; almost as if it were a tangible force you could sense. And everyone there at the time knew it. If only they had chosen their next move more carefully... ''Large, Plump Marine: Heh, you idiot, get a haircut already. Look, it's just a kid.'' ''Blonde Marine with Hair in His Eyes: Huh...?'' The Marine used his free hand to lift the hair out of his eyes, only to see a very upset young man standing before him. ''Blonde Marine with Hair in His Eyes: Oh yeah, you're right; whoops. Though still, he doesn't look too friendly.'' ''Large, Plump Marine: He's probably just upset at the pirates like a good citizen would be. Hey boy!! I get if you're angry with these sea rats and all, but this is no place to be sneaking around! Get home to your mom and dad and let us handle this!'' Spike made no response; he just stood there and glared at them. The Marines and pirates were now much less startled and confused, and rather, were now feeling uneasy around Spike. Something about him just didn't feel normal. To them, it must have looked like the boy had some kind of screw loose. Whatever fun the Marines had at the time was now quickly disappearing. Now they were just getting annoyed. ''Large, Plump Marine: Didn't you hear me?! Shoo!! Get out of here! Or would you like to be arrested for obstructing the law?!'' The average-looking Marine with cap on decided to emphasize his partner's point by taking aim at Spike with his rifle. Spike hardly flinched at this threat though. He first motioned his sight down to the pirates at his left; making them feel much more uneasy than before. But just as soon as Spike had set his sights on them, he had already shifted his focus back to the Marines. Feeling satisfied with whatever must have been going on in his head at the time, Spike started to casually stroll on over to the Marines. Now clearly much more annoyed by the young boy's boldness, as well as his refusal to explain himself, the Marines felt it was in the best interest of the public to shoot first and ask questions later. That's when the first bullet was fired at Spike. Unfazed in the slightest, Spike simply hopped to his right to avoid the shot; leaving the Marines astonished. ''Average Marine with Cap: What in the hell?!! How'd he move that fast?!'' Spike wasn't going to give them the pleasure of knowing however, as he was already charging his way towards the Marine unit. Tightening his right fist harder than ever, Spike made one large leap for the group of men. ''Spike (enraged tone): I'LL TEACH YOU TO MESS WITH PIRATES LIKE ME!!!'' Before they could even react or defend themselves, Spike had performed another astonishing feat: He transformed. Now looking more like a large reptilian monster as opposed to a human boy, Spike threw his tremendous fist at the collection of paralyzed Marines. '''''Spike: COLOSSAL CRASH!!! All that could be said afterward was that the damage was inhuman. All of the Marines were knocked out cold, with very serious injuries along their heads, faces and bodies. Dust rose into the air where Spike's massive fist had cracked and smashed the ground underneath. The Marines themselves were now laying around in a scattered mess; hardly able to move, let alone speak. Still with a face full of malice, Spike shrunk himself back down to his human form. Judging from the expression on his face, he still wanted to rough the Marines up some more. As for the pirates he had defended, they were equal parts amazed and terrified. Whether they had witnessed a Devil Fruit user before, or anyone with Spike's skills or not was irrelevant by this point. They knew they wouldn't survive against him if he was capable of something like this. And so the minute they regained strength in their legs and arms, they picked themselves up from the ground and ran screaming in fear. Now all that remained was a silent, upset Spike, standing in the middle of a ruined street with battered Marines laying in front of him. ---- Some time had passed since Spike's outburst. Back at home, Urufu was still waiting patiently for his son's (now tardy) arrival. Urufu had a scowl on his face as he crossed his arms. He knew he'd have to punish Spike once again. And so there he stood, leaned up against the front side of his house, watching the mangrove roots nestled feet ahead of him; hoping for Spike to emerge from them sooner, rather than later. Today, thankfully enough, his patience would be rewarded, as his adolescent step-son walked out from under the shade of the mangrove trees, with a stoic look on his face. Urufu (annoyed):' Hmph! 'Bout time you showed up, squirt. Spike didn't say a word though; he just kept walking for the door without noticing Urufu's presence. Urufu kept a close eye on Spike, as this didn't seem quite like him. Usually, Spike would make some kind of fuss, or at least be a '''little' more light-hearted than this. But today, it looked like Spike simply wasn't in the mood for company.'' ''Urufu: What's with you? Get into an argument with your friends?'' ''Spike (calmly): No. Let me know when dinner's ready.'' This wasn't sitting right with Urufu. As a father, he demanded he had some level of respect from his own son. Being brushed off to the side and then told what to do certainly wasn't Urufu's idea of respect. He stepped in the way of Spike's advance in order to get matters settled with his son first. Spike simply stood there and gave his father the empty look he had on him the entire way here. ''Urufu: Now hold on there!! First you come home late, after I keep telling you to come back on time, and now you're gonna boss me around and treat it all like it's no big deal?!'' ''Spike: ...'' ''Urufu: What is it with you?!!! Puberty?!! Do all human brats have to act like punks when they get to your age?!!'' ''Spike: ...Dad, I really don't want to talk right now. It's been a long day.'' Urufu's frustration started to subside. "Dad"? Usually Spike referred to him as pops. Was he feeling OK? Urufu couldn't help but feel the need to place his hands gently on Spike's shoulders and look him in the eyes. ''Urufu (calmer): ...What's wrong? You know you can tell me anything. I'm your pops, remember? Just have faith in me, like how I have faith in you.'' Spike glanced off to the side, as if he couldn't bare to meet Urufu's gaze with his own. Definitely something wrong had happened; Spike had gotten into another reckless fight, despite being told constantly not to. And furthermore, like with his fighting, he had shot his mouth off and declared himself to be a pirate in front of several Marines. Spike could only pray they were too wounded to remember any of that, and that this could all blow over soon. Until then, he kept up his awkward silence in front of the man he admired most. ''Urufu: Please Spike...'' Spike thought it over for a bit, until he came to his decision. Maybe he could talk his way out of this; be clever and deceptive, even if it was never his strong suit. ''Spike (hesitantly): It's not that I don't have faith in you, it's... er, well...'' Urufu hung on to every word Spike said. This was all too important to miss out on. After all, what if Spike was in danger? Urufu would do anything to protect his only son. Little did he realize though that this would be put to the test all too soon. Beginning to end. Please open in a new tab or window. As the two tried to patch things up between them, Urufu could hear hasty footsteps racing towards them. His head perked up and he looked out into the mangroves once again. Picking up on this, Spike also directed his attention to where he had came. He turned around and tried to stare out into the shady depths of the wilderness before him. What the two saw creep out of the darkness were a horde of Marines of various sizes, weight and fashion sense. It was enough to make Spike's heart sink. His eyes widened in disbelief, and right behind him was Urufu, who nearly took a step backward in shock. ''Marine #1: There he is!! The pirate from earlier!'' The terrible secret Spike had tried to hide was now starting to reveal itself against Spike's wishes. He froze up as the Marines encircled his home. ''Urufu (shocked): Marines?!! What're they doing here?! What'd they want with us anyway?!'' The Marines however, weren't interested in Urufu nor his questions. It was Spike they were after, and they made it perfectly clear by arming themselves to the teeth with swords and guns. ''Marine #1: You know the drill!! Do not attack the fishman! Go for the boy!'' And still Spike stood there, hardly believing his own eyes. Thanks to one little rampage on his part, he had now thrown himself and his own father into a mess they'd be lucky to escape from. Urufu on the other hand, was now becoming more enraged the more the Marines mentioned anything along the lines of harming Spike. He wasted no time in reaching into his pockets to pull out two very familiar weapons; his brass knuckles, which were now coming onto his hands. ''Urufu (annoyed and gritting his teeth): What was that? Go for-'' As he continued his response, Urufu shouted at the top of his lungs. '''''Urufu: -WHO EXACTLY?!!! 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